Zimbabwe Opposition leader says vote was stolen by Mnangagwa

HARARE, Zimbabwe — Zimbabwe opposition leader Nelson Chamisa on Friday forcefully rejected the narrow election win of President Emmerson Mnangagwa as fraudulent, calling it a vote “stolen from the people.”

For his part, Mnangagwa praised the vote as “free, fair and credible ... an unprecedented flowering of freedom and democracy in our beloved homeland” as the country seeks to move beyond Robert Mugabe’s decades-long rule.

The opposition said it will challenge in court the results of Monday’s election, which Mnangagwa won with just over 50 percent of the vote. The closely watched elections began with a peaceful vote but turned deadly 48 hours later when the military fired on protesters in the capital, Harare, and six people were killed.

Chamisa, 40, spoke shortly after three truckloads of riot police with shields and batons tried to disperse dozens of journalists gathered to hear him. With cameras recording their every move the police eventually pulled back, allowing the opposition leader to give a blistering denunciation of the results.

“We won this election,” Chamisa said, declaring “a day of mourning ... for democracy.”

Chamisa received over 44 percent of the vote but claimed that, based on the opposition’s own count, he won 56 percent. He was asked for evidence but didn’t share it, instead saying the electoral commission “didn’t want to listen to us.”

Mnangagwa said people are free to challenge the vote in court. Speaking to the press, he said Chamisa has a “crucial” role to play in the country’s future.

Zimbabweans had a subdued reaction to Mnangagwa’s win in the first election after the fall of Mugabe, whose rule was marked by increasing repression and the economy’s collapse.

Mnangagwa, 75, Mugabe’s former enforcer and confidante, said he was “humbled” by the victory.

He called the violence on Wednesday “unfortunate” and said the military was called in because vehicles were burned and lives were threatened. He said he will order an independent investigation by “people of integrity” in Zimbabwe and abroad.

Mnangagwa has tried to recast himself as a voice of change, declaring that the once-prosperous Zimbabwe is “open for business” and inviting the Western election observers who for years had been banned by Mugabe.